Mortality attributable to tobacco use in Canada and its regions, 1998

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this report is to calculate 1998 smoking attributable mortality (SAM) and to explore whether SAM estimates have changed from the late 1980s to the late 1990s. METHODS: Using the data from the National Population Health Survey and the Canadian Mortality Database, a modified Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Morbidity and Economic Cost (SAMMEC) method was applied to estimate national and regional smoking-attributable mortality for 1998. FINDINGS: The results indicate that in 1998, 30,230 men and 17,351 women died as a result of both active and passive smoking, including 96 children under the age of 1. This includes 1,107 Canadians who died from both lung cancer and ischemic heart disease attributable to environmental tobacco smoke. The total of 47,581 deaths represents an increase of 9,224 deaths since 1989, with females accounting for 6,531 of these increased deaths. The increase in female mortality is divided between cancers (2,452), cardiovascular diseases (1,646), and respiratory diseases (2,283). In 1998, the top causes of adult smoking-related deaths were lung cancer (13,951 deaths), ischemic heart disease (9,289 deaths) and chronic airways obstruction (6,457 deaths). CONCLUSION: Cigarette smoking remains the number one preventable cause of death in Canada and its impact on the health of Canadians continues to be an unacceptable burden.